


Fight Club

by lebunnylub



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Blood, College AU, Drinking and non-con touching, F/M, M/M, Multi, NSFW, Other, Sexual Themes, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-18
Updated: 2018-07-21
Packaged: 2019-06-12 13:22:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,561
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15340761
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lebunnylub/pseuds/lebunnylub
Summary: He came from years of underground fighting and honestly he wants to put it all behind him but it's difficult when it's permanently seared into his mind.





	1. First Hit

Now Keith wouldn’t have liked to be at frat party if he could help it but sadly pulling the ‘I have homework’ excuse wasn’t going to cut it with Lance’s current determination. Allura was going to be there and so naturally Lance had to be there and if Lance had to be there then the rest of their friend group had to be there to show support. 

With a sigh he decided what the heck? Why not? Going to someone’s place to drink for a bit can’t be so bad right? No biggie, yeah sure the music is way too loud and repetitive and yes it’s insanely crowded but he could muster up enough patience to chill out for a bit. With some alcohol he could likely just drown it all out.

A frat house was the epitome of the college experience. Beer pong tables out back, the pot heads lighting up bongs and blunts in the front as they discuss the insurmountable future and people generally crammed in every inch of the place. There were the dancers who had to grind themselves up on anyone but mostly with their chosen partner but it wasn’t uncommon for them to separate and dance with other people. There was of course the “couples” the two people who can’t seem to keep their hands off each other or their lips. Sucking face seemed to be an olympic sport because there was no end to the training some of these couples deemed necessary.

Thankfully with Hunk’s gentle persuasion the group of them were hanging out in the kitchen, a beer in hand as they joked and talked casually. It was actually pretty nice and would have been nicer if they were simply hanging out in one of their dorms doing this instead of here but he’s already here so he can’t really complain too much. 

“So, where is Allura?” Pidge asked and took a swig of her beer before taking out the playing cards and dealing them out.

Lance looked around fervently for a bit but he couldn’t see her and even if there was a sea of people he could spot her instantly no matter the crowd. “I dunno. She said she was going to come with a friend that she wanted to introduce to us.”

“Wait a minute...” Hunk started and pointed a finger at Lance. “You only brought us here to awkwardly make small talk with Allura’s friend while you try to chat her up...again.”

“H-Hunk! I am...appalled and hurt! How could you say something like that? I would never do that, completely ridiculous but if you could do just that that’d be great.”

Keith stared at the cards in his hand and completely ignored Lance which has become second nature at this point. Pidge and Hunk exchanged looks before sighing.

“She has a boyfriend. You know this Lance.” Pidge added and Lance grimaced at the cruel reminder.

“And?”

“They’re kinda a thing, yknow? They’re lovey dovey. I doubt she wants a side dick.” Hunk adds which earns a snort of a laugh from Pidge and Keith can’t help but smile.

“It’s not like that! I just want to be really really good friends with her!” Lance defensively insists which falls on deaf ears and his head hangs low until he decides he can look at his cards. Seeing as he had a loosing hand he sighs. 

“Lets play some truth or dare.” He offers and the three glance at him and shrug.

Lance perks up that they’re willing to agree and he takes a few gulps of his beer to get the creative juices going. “Pidge! Truth or dare!”

“Uh truth...”

“Okay, I’ve been wondering have you walked in on Matt when he was doing it or vice versa?”

Pidge cringed and adjusted her glasses which should be answer enough but taking a deep breath she decided to specify. “He walked in on me.”

“Really!? With who!?” Hunk exclaimed completely taken for a loop.

“That’s not part of the question so I don’t have to answer~” Pidge teased and the boys looked to each other curiously before deciding to drop it. 

“Okay, Keith. Truth or Dare.”

“Truth.”

“Don’t be such a wuss!”

“Pidge picked truth and she’s not a wuss.” Keith countered coldly and Lance smirked at him in return.

“I can just tell you’re scared~” 

“I’m not scared!” He snapped then glared at Pidge without meaning to as he waited for the question.

She pouted but didn’t take it to heart. “So when’s the last time you had sex?”

Keith recoiled at the question and started to drink his beer to stall for time and also really think about it. “Uh...” He took another swig of his beer. “Probably sophomore year in high school.” 

The three blink a bit and there’s an air of surprise but acceptance in their expression before a look of pity seems to be the common theme on their faces. Feeling uncomfortable he finished his beer and grabbed another one. “Hunk, truth or dare?”

“Oh? Uhhh, I guess I’ll get the ball rolling. Don’t be too mean okay? But dare!”

“Oh come on Hunk. You know Keith doesn’t think of creative dares! He’ll probably tell you to eat a whole plate of cookies or something.”

“If that’s what he wants me to do then that’s the sacrifice I’m willing to make.” He replies with an air of martyrdom around him.

Keith seethed and had to hold back from grabbing Lance but thankfully he wasn’t drunk enough to let loose or maybe he wasn’t sober enough to let his anger take control as it usually did. “I dare you take your shirt off and swing it around your head as you dance.”

Hunk turned red and the other two were quite amused but were concerned for their friend since that was quite the dare. It was deathly silent aside from the crowd of people and loud music but there was no conversation as Hunk seemed to be thinking hard on his options. 

In one sudden movement Hunk stood up took a can of beer, downed in seconds and smashed the can on his head till it was nearly flat then took off his shirt. He waved it in the air as he joined the dancing in the living room area, he took center stage and twirled his shirt above his head as he did body rolls to the music. 

“I love him.” Lance whispered in awe of the truly bravest man in the world.

At first people weren’t so thrilled but soon everyone was cheering and dancing up on him with glee. Pidge, Lance and Keith all laughed heartily and were glad Hunk wasn’t bullied for his action and was probably going to be the highlight of the party.

“Well since Hunk is busy I’ll take his turn. Keith, truth or dare.”

“I just went moron.”

“Truth or dare buddy~”

“...” He looked at Hunk in the crowd and with a sigh he relented. “As long as you don’t tell me to follow Hunks lead I’ll take dare.”

“That’s not how dares work and honestly I totally wanted you to join him but okay fine, how about since you’re obviously lacking in the gettin some department lets have you meet someone new.” He looked around at the crowd of people to find the right victim and as he was scanning he caught the sight of the most beautiful person in the world. Allura.

Her name is beautiful, her face is beautiful the way she talks is beautiful, just all of it. He’s stunned like the love struck puppy he is but finally snaps out of it when he notices Lotor kiss her cheek and walk toward the table with drinks. He scowls but thankfully that broke his trance enough for him to realize another person is with her. He’s quite the looker, hot even and Lance smirks as his idea finally forms.

“Look.” He grabs Keith’s chin and forces him to look towards where Allura is. “The dude there, that’s her friend she was bringing.”

“The guy that looks visibly uncomfortable to be here?”

“A match made in heaven if you think about it. I dare you to smack his ass and give him a kiss as a welcome!”

“What the- I can’t just do that to a stranger!”

“Why the hell not? It’s a dare and I’m sure that it’ll help break the ice right away. You guys can laugh about it later.”

“He won't want to talk to me later!”

“Well you don’t like talking much in the first place so that’s fine?”

Pidge sat in the back with her beer and just took slow slips as the two bantered back and forth until Keith’s pride was put on the line and he finally agreed as long as he can tell the man there was a dare involved. Lance agreed and he waved Allura and her friend over.

She walked with the man and she greeted them all with a smile. “It seems Hunk has become the life of the party.” Allura comments with a smile.

“The life of my party has always been-” Keith elbows Lance in the side before he can finish whatever corny line he was about to say. Allura rolls her eyes but she seems to be in a good mood so she doesn’t chastise Lance for it. Before she would knock him down a peg or two for speaking to her like that since she wasn’t used to being hit on so obnoxiously in the past. She was homecoming queen every year in high school since freshman year to senior year. She was just that well liked and just that pretty.

“Anyways, this is my friend Shiro.” She says introducing the obviously out of placed nerd. He was wearing a buttoned up collared shirt and he was wearing jeans which was acceptable the shoes were more business attire than anything. Lance nudged Keith and smiled.

“Hey, I’m-” Shiro began until Keith stepped forward with an obvious scowl.

“Look this is a dare so don’t take it personally, okay?”

“What?” Shirt question but Keith quickly stood up close to him, smacked his ass which made him jolt and stand up straight. Keith’s other hand went to Shiro’s neck to pull him close as he leaned in to give him the kiss. Lance was all giddy and excitement while Allura’s face held only terror.

Shiro’s eyes widened and something in him snapped, he saw a vision of someone else. The pull of his neck was familiar he could only imagine what was next. Grab his head to pull him down and let gravity do the work, a swift high knee to his nose. It’d be broken for sure but there was a way out of this since the hands were on his neck there was an opening. 

With a reaction time that could only be described as primal instinct Shiro squared up, his stance widened he stepped forward and with one powerful blow he gave Keith the uppercut of his life. Keith blacked out on impact and was falling back as Allura yelled out and Lance and Pidge went to catch him before he hit the floor.

Peoples eyes were drawn immediately to the scene and everyone seemed to stop just to stare at the group. 

“Dude, what the fuck!?” Lance exclaimed as he held the unconscious Keith.

Shiro stared wide eyed at them for a bit, he looked to Allura then around at the people looking at him. “I-I’m sorry...I just...I’m sorry that--” His chest heaved in a frantic uneven pace until it stilled, his throat tightening and he quickly tore through the crowd and ran at the door.

“Shiro...” Allura whispered and covered her mouth. 

“What is with that guy? What’s his problem?”

“...” Allura stayed silent and she seemed to have gotten quite discouraged. Lotor quickly came to her side and held her shoulders.

“Is everything alright darling? What happened.”

‘It’s all my fault, he told me he wasn’t comfortable with crowds and I still made him come. He panicked and now...oh Keith.” She quickly went to Keith’s side and started to check out his eyes and felt his jaw. 

Allura was going for her doctorate and had quite an extensive amount of knowledge so she could asses if he needed urgent medical attention.

“He should be okay but there’s no telling if he has a concussion we should send him to the hospital.”

Lotor went to help pick Keith up so they could take him to the car but soon the dazed male was waking up. “I’m fine.” he croaked and tried to get out of Lance’s and Lotor’s hold.

“No, you’re not. You were just knocked unconscious.”

“I’m fine....wh-who was that guy?”

“Look, Keith, I’m so sorry that happened, Shiro is actually a really gentle person. I have no idea what prompted him to do that.”

“I smacked his ass.” A nice ass by the way.

“Oh uh...”

“I tried to kiss him.”

“Why would you do that?” Allura questioned and felt that maybe Keith was drunker than she realized.

“It was a dare...s-shit...” He passed out again and Lance and Lotor had to brace him quickly.

The group took him to the hospital where he was thankfully found to have nothing wrong with him. They kept him over night and discharged him in the morning.

Aside from the nasty hangover and one hell of a sore jaw he was relatively fine and made his way back to his dorm. He figured he had a good enough excuse not to go to class so he decided to bum it today in his dorm room. 

He had a lot on his mind all of a sudden, and it was revolved around that mysterious guy called Shiro. When Keith was pulling him in for the kiss those eyes seemed innocent and surprised until they turned dark almost like an animal. He deserved it though, he should have never just touched him like that and he couldn’t help but be impressed by the others quickness and strength. Since Keith used to be part of a gang through most of his middle school and high school years he was used to fighting and getting hit but nothing has knocked him out quite like that.

He sat in his room, sometimes watching netflix on his laptop sometimes just sleeping until a knock on his door finally roused him from his bed. He opened it to see a very shy looking Allura.

“Keith.” She breathed out as if she had been holding it. 

“I’m not dead.”

“I-I see that.” She laughs softly and asks if she can come in. Keith nods and she sits at his desk while he sits on his bed. If Lance were here he’d be losing his shit but thankfully the other male was being good and went to class.

“I’m so sorry about what happened last night. I still can’t believe what happened yesterday and I tried to talk to him but he hasn’t answered me aside from an apology text last night.”

“So what’s his deal?”

“I’m not sure, he told me he’s had a hard time with crowded places but he’s always wanted to go to a frat party. He said he-” she seems to chuckle at the fond memory. “- that he wanted to do something normal for a change and get rowdy.” In memory it seemed so innocent but after everything she was unsure of what he actually meant.

“He’s got one hell of an arm.” Actually from what he saw all of the man was stacked like he was made of marble.

“Yes.”

“So does he do sports? Take steroids maybe?”

“Heavens no! He’s never done anything like that in his life. He-” She paused and let out a sigh. “Well he had some trouble in his past and I tutored him so he could get into college. He was part of an outreach program to give those who have fallen behind due to strenuous circumstance another chance to get on the right path. He’s truly gifted, he’s quite amazing and he dreams of becoming an astronaut.”

“So he was part of a gang?”

“N-Not quite? I don’t know the full details but from what he’s told me. He wasn’t part of any gang or did any drugs, he simply was unlucky and got held back a couple years.”

Keith blinked and scratched his head. “So what’s that go to do with how he acted.”

“Well, nothing really but I just want you to know I’ve never seen him act like that before. He’s usually so excited just to talk about space and he’d never hurt a fly but last tonight was a rare occurrence. I think he was overwhelmed by the stimulation so if we get the chance to meet in a more calm setting I’m hoping you’d be open to talking with him and forgive him.”

“...” He was silent and honestly he didn't know how to feel since he was quite impressed actually and there wasn’t any anger he felt towards the other right now and if anything it excited him. Someone with such skill could make for a good sparring partner. He’s been meaning to get back into working out but running and weights bored the hell out of him so he could never keep it up for long.

“Just think it over, please.” Allura said before getting up from the chair and moving to the door. 

“W-Wait, I want to meet him.” He said standing at attention.

Allura perked up instantly and she nodded. “I’ll try to set something up. I’ll text you when I get ahold of him.”

Keith nodded and she left with a wave, it wasn’t two seconds that she was gone before Lance’s head peaked in and he stared at Keith.

“What?”

“So you’re trying to get with Allura too?” Lance questioned and Keith got his pillow and threw it at the door, effectively making Lance move his head out and closing his door. He lays back on his bed and stares up at the ceiling and he can’t help but remember those intense eyes his memories are filled with that split second from last night. 

That was supposed to be a sweet good boy? That was an animal and Keith felt a sort of strange connection with the man named Shiro.


	2. Basics

His memories took him to many different times in his life all of which were painful to recall and seemed to make his body and mind ache. God he wanted to just have some fun and be a normal college guy who goes to party and gets drunk and tries to jump from the second story window into the pool down below but no he walks in and punches a guy out cold. He hated himself.

It wasn’t intentional, something just triggered him when his neck was pulled forward like that but as he recalled he wasn’t pulled down but his mind told him it was going to happen soon, he was going to be bent over and the man was going to drive his knee into his sternum then into his face and then an elbow to finish the job. He could see some faceless goon type figure, it was blurry it was always blurry when he tried to remember faces and he wondered if that was his memory looking out through his swollen and blood shot eyes or his mind just didn’t know how to make a face.

Either way this faceless figure was coming at him to hurt him and he had to defend himself and he had to win. He always had to win.

When he realized what he did and saw the poor unconscious guy being cradled by worried friends he panicked. There was no making this right by any means. He hurt someone and his legs just carried him away, he hated that he felt like such a coward. When he got to his apartment he plopped on his bed and held his head as he just tried to breath to calm down. His heart was going a million miles an hour and he felt that familiar tingle in the tips of his fingers.

He was ready to go, to fight, to take down anyone that got in his way but he wasn’t like that anymore he told himself. He had to be different, he had to get away from that part of him but there was no amount of running that could give him enough distance. He’s been groomed as a fighter most of his life and that is the cross he must bare. 

When his phone lit up and he saw the text from Allura he sighed and answered with an apology before turning it off and putting it to the side. He felt sick to his stomach and he didn’t want to listen to anyone at the moment when his heart rate was sky rocketing. He tried the breathing exercise the doctor showed him but the guilt made his chest restrict.

Allura had been kind to him when he was finally turning a new leaf and started to concentrate on his studies she was so nice to him. She never judged him or asked him any questions about why he was held back two years, she only supported his growth. He got the help he needed and finally he felt like he was going to get the life he dreamed of.

In one instance he felt it all came crumbling down, the hope he had built up had crashed and buried him alive.

Shiro passed out a wave of depression overtaking him and deciding it was best sleep it off and cut contact until he felt like he could be himself again.

That resulted in him forgetting meals for the next couple days and not speaking to anyone while he stayed in his apartment, mostly sleeping. By the third morning he got up feeling groggy as shit and he finally decided to smack some sense into himself, it was enough of this pity party and he begrudgingly went to the cabinet to take some of his meds and shaved those few bristles of a beard and mustache. He splashed some water on his face and got dressed. His outfits were either work out clothes or more formal outfits today he decided he could go for a jog and get some fresh air so workout clothes it was.

Thankfully, the streets were relatively empty and he went on his run through the neighborhood and around the campus. He doesn’t usually listen to music it makes him uncomfortable he can’t hear if there’s other people around especially cars because college students aren’t the most cautious drivers so he felt better being as aware of his surroundings as possible.

He lucked out when he got to a stop signal at a cross walk and wiped his sweat from his brow as he waited for it to turn green. Someone called is name and he looked towards the voice, he didn’t see anyone at first and looked left and right until the voice called again and his eyes scanned the area until he caught sight of Allura and Lotor. Allura was standing up and waving for him to come over.

Guilt raised in his chest but he knew he couldn’t avoid her forever so when he could cross he went right to the two. They were at a little coffee shop sitting outside at what he assumed was a date.

“Hey…”

“Shiro, I’ve been so worried about you! You haven’t answered any of my calls or texts in the last couple days!” She went in and hugged him and he hesitated before patting her back as gently as he could.

“I’m sorry, I just needed some time.” He looked over to Lotor. “Hey man.”

Lotor smiled and gave a nod. “Hello, glad you’re back from the dead or she’d never stop fretting.”

Allura pouted and pulled away to look at Lotor. “Oh don’t be jealous.”

Lotor shrugged with a smile. “I’m not, I was worried too you know.”

“Yes, well, Shiro is finally out now and I’m hoping I could talk to you for a second.”

“Oh, sure but aren’t you on a date?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Lotor said as he sipped his coffee. “We can go on more dates and besides I can let two friends talk with each other right?”

Allura laughed and pulled Shiro inside so they could wait in line. “Shiro, I’m not sure what happened but I know I’m responsible for putting you in that situation-”

“Allura.”

“And I want to make it right in what ever way I can so I was wondering if you’d be okay with meeting Keith properly. He doesn’t hold any ill will and I’m hoping we can move past this.”

“Keith.” That name didn’t ring a bell but he assumed it was the guy he hit. “How is he?”

“He’s fine, he didn’t suffer any serious injuries.”

“Really?” That was a relief and the guy was tougher than he thought or maybe he’s just out of shape, not that he was trying to keep in shape. “That’s good, I’m glad to hear it. If he wants I don’t mind meeting up.”

“Great!”

The two got their drinks and parted ways. Shiro took sips of his coffee as he walked back to his apartment and sat down at the kitchen table to start catching up on homework and notes he missed. Thankfully there was a class doc that had the power point and added notes from classes he could look at before he went to class. He was pretty grateful that in college there wasn’t much in the way of attendance for most classes. He sighed and got his books out to start studying, it was the only thing that could tear his mind away from wandering thoughts and flashbacks to his fighting days. It was a sweet relief and he could feel himself slowly coming back together in a way.

That night after his afternoon class he got a text from Allura that he can meet them tomorrow morning at the coffee shop he saw them at that morning. He agreed because he didn’t have an excuse not to go and it was best to get this over with. He definitely gave the other a bad first impression and this would likely be an awkward meeting but he should apologize properly and stop hiding away from it.

He took his motorcycle since running there and getting all sweaty and gross might come off as gross. He arrived right on time and parked his bike up front before taking his helmet off and getting up off his bike. He caught sight of Allura who of course would be early and the man was right next to her looking rather tired to be up this early.

Shiro walked over tentatively and tried to give his best disarming smile, he meant no harm he wasn’t going to hurt the other and hoped Keith wouldn’t recoil at his presence.

“You’re here.” Keith said and seemed to be sizing the other up. He wasn’t repulsed or scared and Shiro felt like he was being eaten up by the others gaze. He wasn’t sure if he liked that since usually that meant the start of fight. Shiro rubbed his neck and cleared his throat as he glanced to Allura then back to Keith.

“Yeah, look- Keith is it? I’m so sorry about what happened.”

Keith shook his head. “No, it’s no big deal.”

“I knocked you unconscious.”

“It was a good hit.”

Shiro felt a small rubble and soon a low chuckle erupted and he stifled it back with his hand. Allura looked between the two before smiling. 

“I’ll go get us drinks, you two go find a seat.”

Keith and Shiro nodded before they found a little table outside the three of them could sit at. There was an awkward silence that surrounded them for a minute before Shiro spoke up.

“You’re really not upset?”

“Nah. Actually I wanted to ask you a favor.”

“A favor?” He didn’t like where this was going, he didn’t want to get roped into anything like fighting someone else’s bullies.

“Yeah, I want you to be my sparring partner and-” Keith seemed to start blushing as if his next request was something akin to something truly mortifying. “-my trainer.”

“Huh?” With wide eyes he blinked a few times as it sunk in and he rubbed the back of his neck, a nervous habit which Keith took notice of. “I don’t really do fighting anymore.”

“It doesn’t seem like it.” Keith countered and Shiro visibly winced at the verbal jab.

“Why do you want to pick up fighting anyways? Don’t you have better things to do?”

“Not really. I just study and hang out once in a while with my friends but I don’t do any sports. Nothing caught my interest and I used to fight a lot when I was in middle school and high school which is the only time I seemed to have fun.”

“Can’t you pick up karate?” There were tons of karate classes around town and of course the school had martial arts classes.

“It’s boring.” Keith crossed his arms and leaned back in his seat and Shiro looked at him with a bemused smile. What a weird guy but he was amusing and Shiro had to admit he’s never met someone like him.

“So you’re more into MMA?”

“Yeah I guess you could say that, so what do you say?”

“Look I’m not trying to get into fighting again, it’s not something I have good memories of so I don’t think I can grant you that favor but if it’s anything else.”

Keith huffed and leaned forward. “No, what about you just give me pointers? Come with me to the gym, you don’t have to fight with me but watch me and tell me what I’m doing wrong.” 

Shiro was about to point out that there’s no point if there’s no sparring partner but if he says that then Keith will have him cornered and he might just have to agree to be his sparring partner so he decided giving pointers would suffice. “Fine, I can do that much.”

“What are you two talking about.” Allura asks as she puts the drinks down at the table and sits down with them.

“Shiro is going to train me.” Keith says with a smirk and Allura is obviously surprised and looks to Shiro for confirmation. 

“I’m going to overlook his training. I don’t plan on laying another hand on him.” He assured her and she shook her head with an exasperated sigh.

“Boys and their fighting.” But she seemed happy they were getting along and the conversation went into an easy Q and A. What classes they were in, what Major, what high school they went to etc.

They learned a little bit about themselves and when it was time to get going the three got up. “Alright! This was excellent, I’m going to go meet up with Lotor so stay safe you two.” 

Shiro sighed as he watched her leave before looking back to Keith who hadn’t left yet and seemed to be watching him intently. 

“What was the sigh for?”

“Huh? Oh, I’m just-” How was he supposed to put it nicely that he was glad this was over?

“You got a crush on Allura?” Keith questioned which resulted in Shiro choking on his own spit. He started to laugh and he put his hands on his sides as he threw his head back.

“N-No! Oh man, I appreciate her but no that’s not it. I just feel really relieved is all. I thought I fucked up really bad but it’s working out which is new for me.”

Keith looked at him with a sort of calm gaze that was filled with a warm attachment. “I get what you mean.”

“Yeah?” Shiro asked with a smile as he prompted the other to say more but Keith looked away and at Shiro’s motorcycle. 

“I better go to class.” He paused and looked at Shiro with a small smirk. “Can I ask for another favor?”

Shiro tilted his head and nodded along. “I guess so.” 

“Give me a ride back to campus?”

“Huh!? I only have one helmet!” He exclaimed and was completely aghast that the other might suggest they do something so dangerous and illegal.

“It’s not that far and you won’t even have to get on a main street. It’ll be fine, besides I’ll be late if I walk now.”

Shiro mulled it over and he felt bad that the other came all the way out here before his class to meet him and would be late to his class because of him. Shiro bit his lip before letting out a sigh and handing the other his helmet.

“Here, you gotta be safe.”

Keith blinked and looked at the helmet before putting it on and followed Shiro to his motorcycle. Shiro got on and Keith swung his leg over and got on behind him. 

“Hold on.” Shiro said and Keith rolled his eyes but did as he was told. There was no way they were going to go over 20 mph by the time they got to the campus so he was sure if they did end up crashing Keith could hop off in time to avoid any scratch.

They cruised around the block until they were in the campus parking lot and Shiro asked him what side of the campus his class was on. Sure enough it was at the other side and Keith really wouldn’t have been able to make it there in time if he walked. Shiro went around and stopped at the sidewalk in front of the building Keith needed to go to. 

Keith let go of Shiro and got off the bike, he took the helmet off and gave it back to Shiro with a thanks. “So, what dorm are you in?” Keith asked out of the blue as Shiro began to slip the helmet back on.

“Oh, I don’t live in the dorms, I live in the apartments.”

“Really? Well lets meet up tonight if you’re not doing anything. The school gym has some decent equipment.”

“Oh yeah, I got a class this afternoon but I should be free afterwards.” He started to feel around his pockets for his phone until he found it zipped into his jacket pocket. He took it out and began to quickly open up his contacts. “What’s your number?”

Keith took the others phone and put his name and number in it before handing it back. “Text me soon.”

His smile seemed really warm and Shiro couldn’t help but feel a bit flustered all of a sudden. “Y-yeah. I’ll text you right now.”

He sent a text with ‘this is Shiro’ which made Keith’s phone ding and Keith took it out to look at it. 

“Got it, well see yah later.” Keith said and turned around to walk to class, Shiro had to wonder though how the other was going to take notes in class with no bag to hold his pen and paper but he couldn’t find his voice as he watched the other male walk away.

This wasn’t the smartest path he could take but at least he was staying out of any physical confrontation and at a campus gym he didn’t have to worry about things getting dangerous, besides it would be nice to get out and talk to people that aren’t Slav and his friends. Allura although very kind and helpful wasn’t someone he talked to regularly and Slav was a friend from high school that just kind of followed him and he’d have his DnD meetings since Shiro had the space and a table they could set up. 

His friend group was very small so getting a chance to expand it was exciting if not also nerve wracking. He couldn’t even focus through his classes although he still took plenty of notes what was going on, his mind was filled with thoughts of meeting up with Keith. 

After his last class for the day he texted Keith he’d be on his way to the gym before he called Allura. Thankfully she answered but she seemed quite surprised he called.

“Is everything alright?”

“Yeah, it’s all good. Sorry to bug you but I’m meeting up with Keith and I’d like to-” Bond? Connect? Befriend? “make a better impression on him, so is there anything he likes?”

“Oh! Haha! Well he’s quite silent about his interests so I can only tell you the bit I’ve seen. He’s big fan of motorcycles, he likes lions and sci fi.”

Shiro smiled fondly as it seemed to be obvious why Keith wanted to ride on his motorcycle. “Yeah? Sci fi?”

“Uhm, not sure but he was interested in the new Star Wars movies when they came out.”

“Do you think he likes space?” Cause if he did they’ll get along great, Shiro loves space. 

“It’s possible! You can ask him what he likes about it! I’m not quite sure myself. Sorry for not being much help!”

“N-No, you’re great help! Thanks, I appreciate it. I’ll talk to you later Allura, good night.”

“Night, Shiro!”

He hung up the call and noticed he got a text back and it was from Keith saying he’d be a bit late cause he needs to run and get some work out clothes. Shiro sent him a thumbs up emoji before he entered the gym and went to the locker room to change. With a blank tank top and work out sweats he is ready to get some well needed working out in. He started on the treadmill with a moderate incline as he jogged to warm up until he felt loosened up before doing 1 minute jog and 30 seconds of sprint. 

Anyone who saw him could tell he was a beast, there wasn’t an inch of him that wasn’t carved out perfectly like some Demi-god sent straight to bless foolish mortals with goals they will never achieve. He was a hard working guy and it was hard to look away with that intense gaze in his eyes. Even Keith who showed up a few minutes ago could only stop and stare at this prime specimen of man.

Shiro could feel someone’s eyes on him relatively close and he glanced over to see Keith staring at him and nearly tripped over his own two feet. He caught himself and put his feet to the side as he pressed for the tread mill to stop and he lifted his shirt to wipe his brow. Keith stared unabashedly at the scars over the others abdomen and took notice of the glistening six pack as well.

“Sorry, I thought to just get some warming up then but I got ahead of myself.”

Keith shook his head. “Don’t worry, you can keep going, I need to do some warming up too.” He got on the treadmill next to Shiros and started at a light jog. 

Shiro got back on his and started to jog with him but it was obvious that pace wasn’t enough for Shiro and he began to kick it up a notch and kept raising it more and more as the minutes rolled by. Keith tried to keep up with the others speed but he had to admit it was hard for him to keep up without going for a full sprint. He hated to admit it but he was out of shape.

He couldn’t keep up so after 15 minutes he slowed down and got off the treadmill. 

“Oh!” Shiro did the same and followed after him. “You should do some stretching right?”

“Oh yeah, I guess.”

“Do you not usually?”

“Nah.”

Shiro’s impressive eyebrows furrow together and a pout seems ready to form on his lips. “It’s so important you stretch, come on.” He grabs the others wrist and walks him over to the mats where he sits down with his legs open making a ‘V’ and he reaches with both hands to one foot and holds it for 10 second then goes to the other.

Keith usually finds it too boring and tedious but he sits down and does the same. He’s a remarkably flexible guy despite not stretching regularly so it was pretty easy to reach his toes as he stretched and he followed Shiro’s example on what to do. Once they were done stretching Shiro jumped up and Keith followed after him once again. 

“So, I guess you can use the boxing bags, I’ll lift some weights and watch so if I see any bad form I’ll be able to get up and tell you and explain anything.”

“Sounds good.”

There was a long stretch of the gym where on side was full of dumbbells, kettle bells, bars he can load up with as much weight as he wants. He started easy with some 15lb dumbbells and sat at the bench to do some curls.

Keith wrapped up his wrists and put on the boxing gloves before going to work on the punching bag. Shiro watched for a minute before he put his weights down and went to Keith’s side.

“You’re fast and agile I’ll give you that but your form needs some work. Here pull it back and keep your arms up like this. This will be your starting form and will keep your face and chest covered. You’ll go for a jab-” Shiro prompted and waited to see the others jab. He watched him go a few times before stopping Keith, he put his right hand on Keith’s right wrist and stood behind him.

“You rotate it like this.” He said doing it slowly so the other could get a feel for it. “Don’t bend it too much or you’ll end up breaking something.”

“You sure know a lot.” Keith muttered but he seemed open to learning what the other had to teach him. 

Shiro let go of him and shook his head. “It’s some basic stuff, it’s not too much but the basics are important to keep yourself from getting hurt when it comes to training.” He smiles at the other and Keith looks at him a bit amused before looking away to work on his form. Shiro watched him for a few minutes before nodding.

“You get the hang of it quick!” He seemed proud and Keith couldn’t help the grin forming on his lips as he assaulted the bag in front of him. Usually, he swung a little more wildly which resulted in him wasting energy but they were harder to predict in street fights so that could actually be an advantage. 

He glanced over to Shiro who had gone back to pick up weights, he went to 20 lb then 30 lb then 50 lb in each hand and his biceps bulged with each lift, a vein sticking out with strain and and sweat dripping from his temples down his cheek to the tip of his chin. 

Shiro was concentrated on his reps he didn’t notice Keith staring until he he did the amount he had planned and put the dumbbells down. He glanced over to Keith then sat up straight since the other was looking at him so intently. He got his water bottle to take a sip then walked back over to offer it to Keith. 

“Thirsty?”

Keith blinked before snapping back to reality and took the water bottle and chugged down a few gulps. “Thanks.” He screwed the cap back on and handed it back before looking to the punching bag.

Shiro stood there quite awkwardly since Keith wasn’t moving and he figured Keith needed something. He cleared his throat and Keith perked up and looked back to him and seemed surprised Shiro hadn’t gone back to lifting weights.

“Uh…” He had to think of something quick. “That upper cut. Can you teach me?”

“Wasn’t the first hand experience enough?” he joked and Keith quirked a brow as a smile spread on his face.

“Weren’t you overwhelmed with guilt just this morning?” Shiro stiffened and rubbed his neck as an apologetic little smile glowed and Keith could only let out a short laugh. “I’m teasing, Shiro. Besides feeling it is different from seeing how it’s done, why don’t you show me not on me.”

Keith stepped aside and Shiro was willing to counter that he didn’t want to train but punching on a punching back wouldn’t be too bad, right? 

“In boxing you have to keep an eye on your balance and positioning for every punch. You also need to make sure to bring your hand back to your guard. Don’t throw your arm into the air, have a certain idea where you want it to be and if you miss you gotta be able to protect yourself. Also, keep your self loose, don’t clench your fist until just before impact.” Shiro explained and showed all the proper body mechanics before mimicking the swing then he got up close to the bag. “Now this kind of bag isn’t great for an uppercut but just kind of find a spot and dig into it.”

He showed a few good punches, the bag getting a nice dent every time he makes contact. “See?”

Keith nods and Shiro moves aside to let him work at it. “Now focus more on your quick jabs and throw in the uppercut, don’t let it be your main focus.” He pats the others shoulders before going back to the weights. He went back to the 40s then upped it to the 50s ad 60s around 70 he seemed to be struggling to make the curl and his jaw clenched as he tried to exert as much force as possible to lift the dumbbell.

He could only get in about 3 before he had to call it quits and put the dumbbells back on the rack with a defeated sigh, He rubbed at his arms a bit before taking some water and grabbing the 60s to continue working with them. To say he was disappointed in himself would be an understatement. He used to be able to do 100 lbs with only a bit of struggle but things were different back then, he was much more focused and obsessed with strength so he should be glad he’s lost a bit of his power.

He did about 5 sets of 20 with the 60 lb weights before he decided to check back in on Keith. He was glad to see the other still going at it and was quite focused in his assault on the bag.

“Remember how to position your arm!” Shiro called out which made Keith flinch before looking at him in shock. He wasn’t expecting to be called out to when he was in the zone so that took him off guard and narrowed his eyes before he looked away. He put his hands down and Shiro tilted his head to the side before getting up and going to Keith’s side.

“Hey, you’re doing great, it takes practice to get the form right.”

“Yeah, I know…” Keith muttered and refused to make eye contact. Shiro looked him over trying to asses what needed to be done before it dawned on him, maybe Keith was too shy (prideful) to ask for help a second time.

“Here, lets go over it.” He stood behind Keith and held the others wrist and walked him through the movements of the punch a few more times. Shiro felt a sense of happiness seeing how Keith was studying the way his arm moved in Shiro’s hand and despite his past grievance with fighting something like this was actually pretty fun.

‘Thanks, Shiro.” Keith said and with a sigh he dropped his tense shoulders and looked at the other with a smile. “I think I’ve got it for tonight, wanna go get something to eat?”

“Huh? Oh yeah, we’ve been here a while…I don’t mind.” He steps away and they both walk out of the gym area to the showers to rinse off.

“Have anywhere you like?” Keith asked as he walked out of the shower area to grab a towel to dry himself with.

“Huh? Oh, nowhere in particular. Are you feeling like anything.” Shiro didn’t mean to but he watched as the other was getting dressed and took notice of a few scars. He frowned at the sight since Keith was a pretty nice person but it stood to show even nice people get into bad situations. He knew he wasn’t one to talk since his body had its fill of markings from a rough past. 

“I kind of want fries, I know a good place it’s a few blocks though.” The smaller male mused as he grabbed his bag.

“Fries do sound awesome.” he said as he toweled off as well and put his clothes on. “With that distance it’d be easier to take my motorcycle.” he offers and he looks as the other perks up and seems eager to agree.

Shiro laughs and hauls his bag over his shoulders as they make their way out of the lockers and out to the campus grounds. “You ever think of getting a bike?”

“Everyday.” Keith admits and Shiro feels sorry for the other now that he understands Keith has been longing for one of his own. Sadly, Shiro just can’t buy him one and even if he could that would be too forward of a gift to give someone you’ve barely met. It could be seen as a bribe to keep quiet about the punch or something.

“Well, if you get a helmet you’re welcome to come ride with me once in a while.” He pauses. “If that’s something you’re interested in.”

“I’d like that.” Keith answers without falter and Shiro laughs a bit as they get to his motorcycle and he hands Keith his helmet. 

“Safety first.”

Keith hesitates for a moment before taking the helmet. “I don’t need it with the way you drive but thanks.”

“Don’t try to egg me on, I won’t go over the speed limit even if you say I drive like an old lady.” He throws his leg over his bike and plops down. “Now where to?”

Keith tells him the street the diner is on before he gets on behind Shiro and places his hands on the others waist. Shiro bursts out of the parking spot for just a split second before going at an easy speed out of the campus parking and down the street. 

“Well you don’t drive like an old lady, you drive even worse!” Keith jeers and Shiro can’t help but smile and clenches his grip at the handles. He’s tempted to give a quick jump, to make the bike accelerate hard and fast just for a second like before but he decides not to with precious cargo, the others hold doesn’t feel too tight right now so he wouldn’t want Keith flying off.

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know what you think. Comments are appreciated.


End file.
